If you're a South African trader, these 10 forex brokers offer some of the best services for trading with ZAR currency.
South African traders are undoubtedly benefitted from ZAR trading accounts. As funds are held in local banks, deposits and withdrawals can be made faster, and conversion fees are removed. Below are several aspects you should consider when you want to open a ZAR account:
- The broker must be FSCA-regulated. If you are interested in opening a ZAR account, chance is you are a resident of South Africa. Brokers offering ZAR accounts must be regulated not only by the FSCA but also by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB). This is because ZAR accounts use Rand and the funds are held in South African banks.
- The broker should offer lower minimum deposits. The minimum deposits may vary between brokers, but ZAR accounts should have lower amounts compared to those of USD accounts.
- The ZAR account should not have conversion fees. Typically, you will have to convert ZAR to USD and back to ZAR again for every trade. That is inevitable. But brokers that offer ZAR accounts usually exempt traders from paying these fees when funding their accounts. This is unlike international brokers that tend to give traders high exchange rates plus extra fees when converting ZAR to the base currency.
- Fund deposits and withdrawals should be faster and more efficient. Depositing or withdrawing funds should be executed faster and more efficiently as they only involve local banks. It should take place same-day or even instantly. If you use an international broker with a USD account, international transfers could take days, not to mention conversion and transfer fees that may eat up 7–10% of your money.
- Local customer service should be available. The quality of customer service can be a determiner of a good broker. For brokers accepting ZAR currency, it is pretty common to have local offices that support local customers. As South Africa is a multilingual country, some brokers' customer service should also support Afrikaans, Xhosa, and Zulu.
Here we will take a look at top forex brokers that allow you to open accounts with ZAR base currency and offer most of the criteria above. Let's start!
1. XM
There are many trading instruments (tradable assets and contracts) that XM offers to its clients, including forex, stock, commodities, and shares. Currently, four types of trading accounts are provided by XM. The micro and standard accounts have relatively higher trading costs compared to those of other brokers. However, this pricey scheme is offset by the Ultra-Low account that requires a minimum deposit amount of only USD5 or equal in various types of currencies including ZAR. With a spread starting at 0.6 pips and no commission, all types of accounts have max leverage of 888:1. There are no conversion fees from ZAR bank accounts for profit withdrawal.
XM is arguably a great option particularly for scalpers and day traders as the broker executes 99.35% of orders in less than one second. XM also provides video tutorials for new traders including how to open an account, make orders, etc.
XM is a well-regulated broker, having received licenses from the ASIC, CySEC, etc. XM currently operates in South Africa through its FSCA-regulated intermediary, the Key Way Financial. That said, with a rising number of new traders in South Africa, it is only a matter of time before XM acquires an FSCA license.
XM Group is a group of regulated brokers and it is owned by Trading Point Holdings Ltd. Entities under XM Group have significant experience as financial services providers worldwide.
Trading Point of Financial Instruments Ltd was established in 2009 with headquarters in Limassol, Cyprus, Trading Point of Financial Instruments Pty Ltd was established in 2015 with headquarters in Sydney, Australia, XM Global Limited was established in 2017 with headquarters in Belize and Trading Point MENA Limited was established in 2019 with headquarters in Dubai.
XM Group is regulated by the CySEC (Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission) - Trading Point of Financial Instruments Ltd, FSC (Financial Services Commission) – XM Global Limited, the ASIC (Australian Securities and Investments Commission) - Trading Point of Financial Instruments Pty Ltd and DFSA (Dubai Financial Services Authority) - Trading Point MENA Limited.
XM is one of the more experienced brokers in the world of online forex trading today. Since its founding, the broker has experienced a lot of changes, including the addition of the Ultra-Low Account and EN Live Edu that is instructed by 16 global experts.
In terms of trading instruments, XM is a well-known diverse class assets provider, varying from Forex, Crypto, Stock CFDs, Turbo Stocks, Commodities, Equity Indices, Precious Metals, Energies, & Shares. XM prides itself to be the ideal broker in trading execution, offering a stat of 99.35% orders to be executed in less than 1 second. Trading in XM would be also provided with a strict no requotes policy, no virtual dealer plug-in, no rejection of orders, real-time market execution, and the choice for traders to place orders online or by phone.
Spreads on all majors can reach as low as 0.6 pips in Ultra-Low Account, while spreads on other accounts usually start from 1 pip.
To protect the client's fund in the event of extreme volatility, XM presents each account type with Negative Balance Protection. Minimum deposit of $5 applies to Standard, Micro, and also Ultra-Low Accounts. Traders who open accounts in XM are enabled a condition similar to a Cent Account environment in the Micro Account, in which the Contract Size for every lot is only 1,000 units. If it is applied with the smallest lot size in the MetaTrader platform which amounts to 0.01, it means that traders can go as small as 10 units per trade.
For the deposit, XM applies zero-fee deposits in most of its available payment methods. Traders can choose to fund or withdraw their accounts via wire transfer, credit card, as well as the most favorable e-payment choices like Skrill, Neteller, and FasaPay.
To give their clients the best experiment in trading, XM has given access to both MT4 and MT5 platforms, each is available for more than 6 display formats (PC, Mac, Multiterminal, WebTrader, iPad, iPhone, Android, and Android Tablet).
All in all, there is no doubt that XM has gone global with its deep commitment to providing services in more than 30 different languages across the world. Aside from easing traders' experience with mainstream trading platforms and high-quality trading execution, XM is open to various types of traders, from small capital traders to the more experienced ones with big deposits at the ready. Traders are even provided with a Cent Trading environment should they choose to register under Micro Account.
For their global approach, XM has ensured that traders from various countries could access their service easily. This results in the provision of different domains specified for traders in certain jurisdictions. For example, traders from Indonesia could access XM via this link.
2. HF Markets
HF Markets is an NDD broker and is regulated by the FSCA, FCA, and CySEC. Just like most CFD brokers, HF Markets offers many tradable assets such forex, commodities, indices, shares, bonds, and EFTs. What makes it stand out among other brokers is its micro account that offers a low minimum deposit of around USD5 and high leverage of 1000:1. Fund withdrawals and deposits are free of charge even for ZAR accounts. Local customer service can be reached 24/5 with toll-free telephone numbers.
Even though HF Markets is not equipped with a web-based platform, it provides users with the universally-loved MT4 and MT5, plus a mobile app. In addition, various trading tools are available to assist traders. However, in order to get access to Autocahrtist, its best technical tool, you are required to have a minimum balance of ZAR6,500. If you are a beginner, it is perhaps not very wise to immediately pay that kind of money. You may want to learn the basics first. Don't worry, though, HotForex provides plenty of free educational content and technical tools.
HF Markets is an award-winning forex and commodities broker. Established since 2010, the company provides trading services and facilities to both retail and institutional clients. For more than 9 years in business, HF Markets has around 1,500,000 live accounts opened and 200 employees globally.
Based on its services, HF Markets can be regarded as middle-class category. Clients do not need to prepare a big deposit for joining to trade with this broker. Also, there are various account types, trading software, and tools to facilitate individuals and institutional customers to trade forex and CFD online.
HF Markets is a registered brand name of HF Markets (Europe). Based on the location, the company is regulated by various financial regulators. Here are the details:
- HF Markets (SV) Ltd, registered in St. Vincent & the Grenadine as an International Business Company with the registration number 22747 IBC 2015.
- HF Markets (Europe), authorized and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) with Licence Number 183/12.
- HF Markets SA (PTY), is authorized and regulated as a Financial Service Provider (FSP) by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) in South Africa, under license number 46632.
- HF Markets (Seychelles), incorporated under the laws of the Republic of Seychelles with registration number 8419176-1, regulated by the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (FSA) under Securities Dealer Licence number SD015.
- HF Markets (DIFC) Ltd, authorized and regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) under license number F004885.
- HF Markets (UK) Ltd, authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) under firm reference number 801701.
If traders have more experienced, knowledgeable, and sophisticated trading environment, they can join to become Professional Clients, who can manage and assess their own risks. For that reason, these kinds of clients are granted access to more favorable rates but afforded lesser regulatory protections than retail clients.
Trading with HF Markets can enable traders to access a variety of trading instruments like CFDs on Forex, Cryptocurrencies, spot metals (gold, silver, and others), energies (oil and gas), commodities (such as coffee, copper, and sugar), indices, bonds, and popular shares such as Google, Apple, and Facebook.
HF Markets offers some of the tightest spreads in the market, starting from 0 pips in Zero Account. This broker quote major foreign exchange currency pairs to five decimal places. Therefore, traders have the opportunity to get more accurate pricing and the best possible spreads.
HF Markets receives numerous highly prestigious titles, including the huge honor of being ed to join the ranks of the World Finance Top 100 Global Companies. Others are Best Client Funds Security Global by Global Brands Magazine, Best Global Forex Copy Trading Platform by Global Forex Awards 2019, Fastest Growing Forex Broker Mena 2019 by International Business Magazine, and many more.
After opening an account in HF Markets, traders will obtain various forex trading platforms to accommodate all of their trading demands. Whether traders like to trade on desktop or prefer to trade on-the-go, they can use MetaTrader 4 on desktop (terminal, multi-terminal, and web terminal) and phone (iPhone, iPad, and Android).
Clients' funds are held in segregated accounts. Only major banks are used by Markets because they believe that successful traders have to give their full attention to their trading rather than worrying about the safety of their funds.
Traders do not need to worry about transaction fees when depositing and withdrawing. Transaction fees are not charged, and diversity of payment methods enable them to choose between Wire Transfer, Bank Card, and online payments (Neteller, iDeal, Sofort Banking, and Skrill). HF Markets ensures that traders make fast transactions 24/5 during the standard hours.
Traders can earn extra income by joining the affiliate program offered by Markets. Clients who join this program will get some advantages, such as 60% of Net Spreads based on the volume traded by sub-clients, up to $15 per a lot of net revenue, and many more. More information about HF Markets can be obtained on their official website which is supported in 27 languages.
From the review above, it can be concluded that HF Markets is one of the award-winning forex and commodities brokers. There are various account types traders can choose in HF Markets, and the broker itself becomes a favorite among traders for its low spreads. This condition is very suitable for traders with limited funds and a desire to get more opportunities to gain maximum profit.
3. Exness
Exness is a broker with a global presence. Besides forex and other popular assets, you can also trade cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum and Ripple among others. At the time of this writing, Exness has several types of accounts. The standard account of MT4 has a minimum deposit of USD10 and an average spread of 1 pip on the EUR/USD. Exness supports MT4, MT5, web, and mobile platforms.
Exness is an attractive choice for cash-strapped traders thanks to free fund deposits and withdrawals, low trading costs, and below-average swap fees. Furthermore, when your account is temporarily inactive, you won't be charged dormant fees. Instead, your account will be archived after being inactive for about 3 months, and you can recover the account any time you access it again. In other words, it is very suitable for those who only engage in trading to kill time.
Even though Exness has an analysis blog that keeps you updated every few days, the quality of the contents, however, leaves a lot to be desired. But considering the fact that free forex education is ubiquitous, we can consider this a minor weakness. Regarding regulation, Exness is authorized by FSCA which, by default, makes it a safe broker for South Africans. Exness is also a member of the Investor Compensation Fund, the duty of which is to protect traders and compensate them due to unexpected market conditions.
The choice of broker is adjusted to the needs of each trader. If you are a trader who only needs a basic platform and trading features with the best attributes, then Exness can be your best choice.
Exness covers its lack of feature variations with other advantages like low spreads starting from only 0.1 pip. This is very suitable for traders who use scalping strategies (Scalper). Spreads on major pairs in certain account types can also be as low as 0.0 pip, depending on market conditions.
Not only that, but traders can also enjoy other advantages such as automatic fund withdrawals. Exness processes the majority of client withdrawals instantly, without manual checks; however, withdrawals may be subject tos depending on the payment provider or method of choice.
The safety of traders' funds is also guaranteed as Exness is one of the European-based STP/ECN brokers. Exness's ability to become an official partner of the Real Madrid soccer team for 3 years, starting July 2017, also provides evidence that the company has high solidity.
Deposits and withdrawals may be made 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. However, it is important to note that the company shall not be liable fors in processing deposits and withdrawals if suchs are caused by the payment system.
Traders do not need to worry about transaction fees when depositing and withdrawing. Exness doesn't charge any transaction fees to traders even though some charges may be incurred depending on the payment provider of choice. A variety of payment methods are provided for traders, including Wire Transfer, Bank Card, Neteller, Skrill, and many others.
The financial reports and metrics on the Exness website are audited quarterly by Deloitte, one of the four largest public accounting firms globally.
Moreover, Exness is one of the mote transparent brokers in the online trading industry. Traders can find out all information about this company on the website, such as trading volume, number of active clients, client deposits, company funds, and many more.
The platforms provided by Exness vary in MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Web, and Mobile platforms. This makes it easy for traders when trading on Exness, as they can also access Exness platforms anywhere and anytime.
Over the years, Exness has developed into a broker that attracts traders. Trader's trust is further enhanced by its compliance with financial regulations like the FCA and CySEC.
One measure of client confidence can be put on the trading volume. By December 2018, their clients' monthly trading volume reached USD348.4 billion and active traders around the world surpassed 50,342.
Through the program offered by Exness, traders also have the opportunity to earn extra income by becoming their partners. From the Introducing Broker (IB) program, partners can earn up to 33% spread commission from every new client that registers with them.
Additional income can also be obtained from Exness Partners. Traders can get a spread commission of up to 25% per transaction made by traders who register through an affiliate link.
When trading with Exness, clients can also make use of its free VPS hosting services. A VPS (Virtual Private Server) offers increased reliability and stability for traders as they can maintain their trades and expert advisors without interruption in the event of unexpected technical issues, such as internet or electricity downtime.
From the review above, it can be concluded that Exness is a favorite broker for traders because of low spreads and flexible account types. This condition is very suitable for traders with limited funds but is in need of more opportunities to get maximum profit. This broker is also well known for its maximum support on both new and existing partners.
4. Khwezi Trade
Unlike the majority of brokers on this list, Khwezi Trade is a local South African broker, thus, naturally, the broker is regulated by FSCA. In terms of trading costs, Khwezi Trade is more or less the same as other brokers. ZAR accounts can be opened with a minimum deposit of ZAR500 and an average spread of 1.4 pips on the EUR/USD. All three types of accounts provided have a personal account manager that will be very much appreciated by beginners and experienced traders alike.
Khwezi Trade is well-known for its focus on customer needs. The broker gives additional security for traders by keeping their funds in a segregated account at the Standard Bank of South Africa. Also, depositing and withdrawing funds are free of charge and can be processed on the same day. In addition, customer service is provided in English, Afrikaans, Zulu, Sotho, and Xhosa.
If you're a South African trader and forex is your only focus, Khwezi Trade is a great choice. However, if you plan on growing your portfolio someday, you may want to think twice as tradable instruments available are quite limited, at least for the time being.
5. Plus500
One of the most well-known brands in forex trading, Plus500 also enters the South African financial market by expanding its reach and being registered with the FSCA. Plus500 is also regulated by the FCA, ASIC, etc. For South African traders, the maximum leverage on all accounts is 30:1. There are no conversion fees from ZAR bank accounts, and the spread starts at approximately 0.8 pips on the EUR/USD, with a minimum deposit of around ZAR1,500.
Unfortunately, MT4 and MT5 platforms are absent in Plus500. Instead, the broker offers its proprietary platform that allows you to enter various financial markets. The Plus500 platform is user-friendly and allows you to create a watchlist, analyze charts, monitor your trades, etc. There are literally more than a hundred indicators that you can . If you are new, you can try all of these with its unlimited demo account. Plus500 also offers a professional account that can only be applied by traders who meet certain criteria.
Plus500 is a UK-based company with its main offices located in the city of London. The company is authorized and regulated by FCA. For traders who are looking for a broker with top-tier regulators, Plus500 can be the right choice.
Plus500 offers 2,000 instruments to over a million clients. List of instruments available for trading with their CFD service include forex currency pairs, indices, cryptocurrencies, commodities, shares, and ETFs. Traders can choose instruments suitable for their needs.
Regardless, beginners should be extremely cautious while choosing their assets, as it can get daunting, confusing, and inherently risky.
When traders open an account, Plus500 will hold traders' funds on a segregated basis, following FCA's client money rules. Traders do not need to worry about Plus500 using their funds for hedging, as it is strictly prohibited to use clients' funds for this purpose.
Other advantages when trading in Plus500 are tight spreads and no commissions. The company only offers a single type of account, but traders can update the account from Retail to Professional by following some standards.
To apply Professional Accounts, traders have to fulfill at least 2 of the following 3 criteria eligible, such as sufficient trading activity in the last 12 months, financial instrument portfolio of over 500,000 Euro, and relevant experience in the financial services sector.
Plus500 is well-regarded for its services through the market spread, leverage up to of 1:30 for Retail Accounts, and leverage up to of 1:300 for Professional Accounts. Plus500 tries to give a sensible choice of leverage, which not only controls the risk but also helps novice traders to exercise more control over their trading emotions.
Founded in 2008, Plus500 provides almost the same features to both Retail and Professional account, including clients' money protection, negative balance protection, best execution for orders, clear and transparent information, as well as financial services compensation scheme. Still, Professional account is more advanced as it has access to FOS.
Based on the statistics, 76.4% of Retail account owners in Plus500 lose money when trading CFDs. Because of that, Plus500 always warns traders to consider their understanding of how CFDs work and their affordability to take high risk of losing money, before starting a trade in Live Account.
Even so, Plus500 has gained the trust of traders throughout the world. They have around 39 million positions opened, 304,000 active customers, and billions of volume trading processed by their system.
Plus500 always tries to give the best services to their clients. One of the ways to reach their goals is by making clients feel confident in their trading activity. They have a simple and easy-to-use trading platform, with an especially well-designed mobile platform. Traders can access the Plus500 platform via web-trader, iPhone/iPad, and Mobile App.
In their platform, traders will get advanced tools such as stop limit, guaranteed stop, free email and push notifications on market events, and alerts on price movements. All of these tools can help traders to navigate the market with better understanding.
As for payment methods, Plus500 provides various choices like Visa or MasterCard, electronic wallets (PayPal and Skrill), and bank transfer (direct bank to bank funds transfer).
For any concerns, troubles, or trading issues, traders can contact Plus500's customer service that is available 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. The official website of Plus500 can be accessed in 24 languages.
Overall, Plus500 has some advantages and disadvantages. As it has a license from an elite regulator, traders can feel safe when trading in Plus500. It also provides a 24/7 support team to help traders. But, offering leverages up to 1:300 is not suitable for high-risk traders, such as scalpers, who indulge in high-frequency trading that holds positions in the market for a brief period and typically use high leverage.
6. FxPro
FxPro is an NDD broker where you can trade forex, shares, futures, and other assets. FxPro is licensed by the FCSA for the South African market, as well as the FCA, CySEC, etc. The trading costs of its five types of accounts are different from one another, but with a minimum deposit amount of around ZAR1,500, you can open an account on MT4 and MT5. The spreads also vary depending on the platform. In MetaTrader accounts, the spread starts at 1.41 pips on the EUR/USD, but it's only 0.31 pips if you use cTrader, albeit with commissions.
FxPro won't charge you deposit and withdrawal fees, provided that you use FxPro Wallet. An exception may be made if you use particular payment methods such as Neteller and Skrill without having placed any trades beforehand. After your account is inactive for a year, keep in mind that you will be charged an inactivity fee of USD15 per month.
Ever since its establishment in 2006, FxPro has successfully expanded to serve retail and institutional clients in more than 170 countries. Their head office is in London, UK.
FxPro UK Limited is authorized and regulated by the FCA since 2010. Meanwhile, other subsidiaries such as FxPro Financial Services Limited is authorized and regulated by CySEC since 2007 and the FSCA since 2015. Because of that, traders do not need to worry again about their funds safety. As a strong proponent of transparency, it established the highest standards of safety for clients' funds, as the company chooses to keep the funds in major international banks, fully segregated from the company's funds.
They always try to provide transparent and ethical practices across the global trading industry. In 2018, 74.65% of market orders were executed at the requested price while 12.8% of the client's orders were executed with positive slippage. Also, only 1.4% of all instant orders received a requote with 0.72% of them receiving better price when executed.
The total number of trades in FxPro has increased from year to year. In 2018, the number of trades achieves 53.6 million. Based on trust from their clients, FxPro received awards as Most Trusted Forex Brand UK 2017 by Global Brands Magazine. Besides, they became the first broker to sponsor an F1 team in 2008. There are around 60 UK and International Awards which had been achieved by FxPro.
They are committed to create a dynamic environment that equips traders with all the necessary tools for their trading experience. Opening an account in FxPro grants access to more than 250 CFDs on 6 asset types, including forex, shares, spot indices, futures, spot metals, and spot energies. They want to provide their clients with access to top-tier liquidity and advanced trade execution with no dealing desk intervention. The average execution time is less than 11.06 millisecond with up to 7,000 orders executed per second. Those advantages enable traders to benefit from tight spreads and competitive pricing.
Furthermore, FxPro is recognized as an innovative broker. The company allows its clients to enjoy a wide range of trading platforms, such as MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, and FxPro Edge. Web-based versions and mobile applications are also available so that traders can access financial markets at any time and anywhere.
Traders can choose platforms according to their needs. Fans of MT4 is provided with instant execution and easy-to-use trading platform. In this account, leverage is up to 1:500 and spreads start from 1.6 pips without commissions.
If traders want to get experience with more modern technology, traders should choose FxPro MT5 Accounts. In this account, spreads start from 1.5 and leverage is up to 1:500 without commissions.
Another type of accounts is FxPro cTrader. It is suitable for traders who give priority to the speed of execution with the most restrictive spreads compared to other account types'. FxPro cTrader is a powerful trading platform offering the best available bid and ask prices, with orders filled in just milliseconds. The platform also provides Market Depth and trading analysis tools. In this account, spreads start only from 0.3 pips. But, traders have to pay commissions $45 per $1 million traded (upon opening and closing a position) in forex and metals.
The key difference between MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, and cTrader lies in the range of the CFD products that are available. The MT4 platform gives traders a chance to open positions on all of the 6 asset classes, whereas the MT5 doesn't support shares, and cTrader doesn't support shares and futures.
Besides 3 types of platforms above, trading in FxPro also enables access to FxPro Edge. This platform offers clients a new way to trade the markets in the form of spreads betting.
Each broker has pros and cons, and FxPro is not an exception. Aside from the advantages as explained before, FxPro has a high minimum deposit. Also, there are not many types of payment and withdrawal methods available at FxPro. Some types of methods even require traders to pay fees. However, it is still important to note that clients can trade forex, shares, indices, metals, and energies, with limited risk account at no additional cost in Fxpro
Regardless of the advantages and disadvantages, FxPro can be traders' choice as one of the best brokers with sophisticated technology. The company is suitable for traders prepared to trade with funds starting from $500.
7. Blackstone Futures
Blackstone Futures is a South African broker that offers ZAR accounts with a minimum deposit of only ZAR1,000. The spread is also relatively low at 0.6 pips on the EUR/USD. Fund deposits, withdrawals, and inactive accounts are not charged. That said, inactivity lasting more than 90 days may lead to the cancellation of any bonuses credited to your account.
Blackstone Futures provides MT4 as the main trading platform, with CloudTrade, its built-in platform, available as a more friendly tool for new users. For the daily market analysis, you can access Blackstone Futures' social media channels.
Being a domestic broker, Blackstone Futures is regulated by the FSCA in addition to other regulators such as FCA, ASIC, and FINSA. The clients' funds are stored in South African banks, which simplifies the refund process if the broker goes bankrupt.
8. Markets.com
Markets.com is licensed by the FSCA in the South African market. Other regulations include the FCA, CySEC, ASIC, and BVI FSC. Markets.com has over 2,200 financial instruments on its built-in platform Marketsx. Accounts on Marketsx are quite expensive as you're required to deposit at least ZAR2,500. However, with a wide ion of trading instruments —over 50 forex pairs, stocks, cryptos, commodities, major indices— you can grow your trading portfolio. The spread starts at 0.6 pips on the EUR/USD, and the maximum leverage is 300:1. MT4 and MT5 are also available.
Marketsx facilitates traders with tools based on technical analysis, fundamental analysis, and market sentiment. With a single click, you can track your orders, traded instruments, and open positions. Plus, an account manager is dedicated for each trader.
9. Global GT
Global GT is a new broker that currently only supports the MT5 platform. It doesn't sound like much but is actually more than enough to facilitate your trading activities. Global GT offers a minimum deposit of as low as ZAR75 and leverage as high as 1000:1 on all accounts. In addition, there are no fees charged on deposits, withdrawals, and inactivity. The spreads are relatively higher as Global GT is an STP broker that marks up the spread set by the liquidity providers. However, the broker also has an ECN account that uses raw spreads.
Although a newcomer, Global GT is legit and has acquired the FSCA and FSA licenses. Accounts are segregated, and clients are protected from negative balances. Global GT lacks educational content, but the broker has a responsive customer service team that is available 24/7 for all technical queries and questions related to your trading activities.
10. FXPRIMUS
You can open an account with this broker with a minimum deposit of ZAR1,500. The spreads start at 1.5 pips on average (floating) and 0.3 pips (raw). FXPRIMUS is an FSCA-regulated broker that is also a member of the Investor Compensation Fund (ICF). With this, up to 20,000 EUR of your funds is protected. FXPRIMUS further seeks to protect its professional clients via professional indemnity insurance worth USD2.5 million. The broker also involves third parties to ensure that fund withdrawals are performed quickly and efficiently.
Above we have recommended you ten forex brokers that accept ZAR currency. Obviously, the final decision is in your hand, and it is not in our authority to force you to pick one on the list. In fact, we encourage you to make your own research because there are thousands of brokers out there.
Branding their trading service as a three-pronged approach of safety through technology and education, FXPRIMUS is a broker operated by Primus Markets INTL Limited, a member company of the FXPRIMUS Group regulated by Vanuatu Financial Services Commission (VSFC). Other members in the network include Primus Global Ltd (regulated by CySEC) and Primus Africa (Pty) Ltd (regulated by FSCA).
Founded in 2009, FXPRIMUS brought their safety assurance with several programs like negative balance protection, segregated account, top-tier liquidity, third-party monitoring, and professional indemnity insurance of €2.5 million.
As for the main trading conditions, FXPRIMUS offers spread from 0.1 pips with a minimum trading size of 0.01 lot. Trading instruments in FXPRIMUS cover most of the highly traded assets in the financial market, starting from forex major pairs, equities, indices, energies, precious metals, and cryptocurrencies.
Interestingly, trading in FXPRIMUS also leads to the offering of two special accounts seemingly based on spread and/or execution, which are Variable and ECN Premium accounts. Traders who register under the ECN account would be served with the lowest spread starting from 0 pip. As much as its flexibility to present many kinds of trading accounts, FXPRIMUS doesn't describe the trading specifications for every account in great detail.
Therefore, traders may face difficulties when doing some research on additional but important specs such as maximum leverage, Stop Out and Margin Call levels for each account, etc. Nonetheless, spread and swap details are provided thoroughly on a special page labeled as Live Spreads and Swap. This reflects on FXPRIMUS' commitment as a transparent broker.
On the deposits and withdrawals front, FXPRIMUS generously gives traders with 0% fee policy. It enables traders to be more flexible in managing their deposit and withdrawal numbers without considering the number of fees that may be applied to their transactions. The payment methods vary from Wire Transfer, Credit Card, electronic payment like FasaPay and Skrill, as well as Bitpay that facilitates cryptocurrencies' holders.
Although the minimum deposit following an account opening in FXPRIMUS is quite high for new traders, this broker greatly emphasizes the importance of educational features. Traders can take advantage of numerous features like Weekly Outlook, Expert Guests, tutorial videos, and Webinars that serve educational purposes as well as analytical importance.
Unfortunately, FXPRIMUS hasn't upgraded its platform to a dual offering with MT4 and MT5. The broker still focuses on MT4 as the only trading platform for its traders, even though it tries to be at the forefront of high-end brokers in terms of technology advancement by providing VPS, Platinum API, and an in-house PAMM platform.
In conclusion, FXPRIMUS is an ideal broker to traders looking for safety aspects and mid-level trading technology. Considering its minimum deposit standard, it is recommended for traders with intermediate-level experience.
The Problem with ZAR Accounts
We have known that not many brokers offer ZAR accounts to traders, and traders are more likely to prefer opening USD accounts. Now we will see some of the challenges that ZAR accounts encounter.
ZAR Devaluation Affects International Brokers
The fact the ZAR is not a major currency could significantly affect brokers, especially international ones. Most global brokers price their costs in USD. Thus, they have to convert USD to ZAR and expose themselves to the risks associated with exotic currencies. In fact, they do lose money when ZAR devalues. That's why not all brokers are willing to introduce ZAR accounts as one of their products.
ZAR Lacks Liquidity Providers
This issue is beyond traders' or even brokers' control. ZAR accounts need ZAR liquidity pools, and as of today, many South African banks are unwilling to provide liquidity to the pools. The lack of liquidity means that there are no sufficient amounts to cover the trades. This is the reason why ZAR accounts are still rare today.
ZAR Is Not a Major Currency
Obviously, you can trade the USD/ZAR or EUR/ZAR if you want to, but these are what we call exotic pairs. The price movements are more volatile, the spreads are wider, and they generally pose more risks to traders. Major pairs such as EUR/USD, USD/JPY, or GBP/USD are much safer choices. However, when trading those pairs using ZAR accounts, your funds will have to be converted to the base currency first, and then converted back to ZAR after your trade is closed.
Say, if you trade with floating spreads and the commission is charged in USD, currency conversion will take a small portion of your trading outcome. And if you open multiple positions at once, the total conversion can be expensive. This is an aspect you should consider when calculating your overall trading profit or loss. That said, most ZAR accounts have fixed commissions in ZAR currency.
So, should you open a ZAR account? If you're curious, you should try to open it but remember to consider these: no conversion fees, faster deposits, and faster withdrawals. Furthermore, keep in mind that some brokers use USD for trading costs. If your style is to open multiple trades simultaneously, you may end up losing unnecessary amounts of money with a ZAR account. So, double-check whether brokers on your shortlist charge commission in ZAR or USD.